Hi from Leicester. Probably the most exciting thing that has/will EVER happen in Lesta this Saturday 26th July 2014. The long awaited opening of the Richard III visitor centre. Features 3D print of the skeleton and the excavation site amongst other displays. On the opening day the AC was welcomed on a warm day! The actual remains are to be re-interred at Leicester Cathedral later this year.

Hi from Leicester. Probably the most exciting thing that has/will EVER happen in Lesta this Saturday 26th July 2014. The long awaited opening of the Richard III visitor centre. Features 3D print of the skeleton and the excavation site amongst other displays. On the opening day the AC was welcomed on a warm day! The actual remains are to be re-interred at Leicester Cathedral later this year.

Thank you for the update. I watched the documentary on the Smithsonian channel last night. I am sorry people from York are so pissed about your town keeping the bones. I read the comments from the article.

Thank you for the update. I watched the documentary on the Smithsonian channel last night. I am sorry people from York are so pissed about your town keeping the bones. I read the comments from the article.

Richard, III DNA Shows British Royal Family May Not Have Royal Bloodline

By Sarah Knapton, Science Editor
telegraph.co.uk

02 December 2014

When the body of Richard, III, was discovered in a car park in Leicester in 2012, archaeologists knew it was a momentous find.

But, little did they realise that it might expose the skeletons in the cupboard of the British aristocracy, and even call into question the bloodline of the Royal family.

In order to prove that the skeleton really was Richard, III, scientists needed to take a DNA sample and match it to his descendants.

Genetic testing through his maternal DNA proved conclusively that the body was the King. However, when they checked the male line they discovered something odd. The DNA did not match showing that at some point in history an adulterous affair had broken the paternal chain.

Although it is impossible to say when the affair happened, if it occurred around the time of Edward, III, (1312- 1377), it could call into question whether kings like Henry VI, Henry, VII and Henry, VIII had royal blood, and therefore, the right to rule.

Without his claim to royalty, Henry, VII is unlikely to have been able to raise an army for the Battle of Bosworth Field, in which Richard, III, was killed, and the history of England could have been very different.

And it has implications for our own Royal Family who also share a direct bloodline to the Tudors.

Kevin Schurer, Professor of English Local History, at the University of Leicester said, “The first thing we need to get out of the way is that we are not indicating that Her Majesty should not be on the throne.

“There are 19 links where the chain could have been broken so it is statistically more probable that it happened at a time where it didn’t matter.

However, there are parts of the chain which if broken, could hypothetically affect royalty.”

Because Richard, III, was childless, scientists looked at the descendants of Edward, III, his great great grandfather.

Genetically, fathers pass on a copy of their Y chromosome to their sons, so Richard and Edward should carry the same DNA. Likewise, any descendent of Edward’s would share the same Y chromosome as Richard, and a match would prove his royal descent.

However, scientists were intrigued to find that the DNA did not match, suggesting a, ‘non-paternity event,’ somewhere between Edward, III, and his descendants. In other words, someone was unknowingly illegitimate.

If the illegitimate baby was Edward’s son, John of Gaunt, (1340 - 1399), or his son, Henry, IV, (1366 - 1413), then the royal blood line would be lost.

Prof Schurer added, “If there is one particular link that has more significance than any other it has to be the link between Edward, III, and his son, John of Gaunt.

“John of Gaunt was the father of Henry, IV, so if John of Gaunt was not actually the child of Edward, III, arguably Henry, IV, had no legitimate right to the throne and therefore neither did Henry, V, Henry, VI, and indirectly, the Tudors.

“Likewise, if the break is in the part of Richard, III, this would also ask questions about legitimacy of the claims of Richard and his brother, Edward.

“However, you are never going to get an answer without exhuming a dead person.”

Henry, VII, (1457 – 1509), claimed a right to the throne through his wife Elizabeth of York, who was the daughter of Edward, IV, (1422 - 1483). Her royal line also came through Edward, III, via Edmund, Duke of York, the brother of John of Gaunt.

Henry also had a royal bloodline through Margaret Beaufort, his mother, who was the great great great great granddaughter of Edward I, (1239 - 1307), but, the Beauforts were banned by statute from ruling by Henry, IV.

Tudor historian and author Elizabeth Norton said the research could have wide implications for British history.

“This is a very interesting finding. There are huge arguments about whether Elizabeth of York was legitimate,” said Ms Norton, “This might suggest that she did not have a royal blood line and if so then the Tudors did not either.”

However she believes that the break is unlikely to have happened with John of Gaunt.

“John of Gaunt and his wife are really a love story,” she said, “He married her and legitimised the children he had with her. So it’s unlikely that the link was broken there.”

The DNA results also revealed new details about the appearance of Richard, III. It proves he is likely to have had blue eyes and blond hair, which may have darkened over time.

Experts say a portrait of Richard which hangs in the Society of Antiquities in London is the closest representation of the former King.

Dr Turi King, of the department of genetics at the University of Leicester added “There are no contemporary portraits of Richard. They all post-date his death by about 25-30 years onwards.
“So what I was interested in doing was looking at what the DNA evidence could tell us about what his hard an eye colour was predicted to be and see which portrait that most closely matches.

“The DNA evidence indicates that he has a high probability of having blue eye colour and blond hair. That would be a childhood hair colour, and hair can darken with age.”

Dr King is currently attempting to sequence the entire genome of Richard, III to look for diseases and health issues that the King might have suffered.

The Royal Household said it did not wish to comment on the research, which is published in the journal, Nature Communications, and funded by the Wellcome Trust.

Uh oh!

Photos

The DNA Trail

The portrait of Richard from The Society of Antiquities

Your Source For Death Pictures and Death Video

The Following User Says Thank You to diamondsmiles For This Useful Post: